Childbirth Philosophers
October 10th, 2008 Posted by: admin
Over the last few decades, a number of people have influenced the way women and their caregivers approach childbirth. Their teaching and ideas have changed women’s attitudes to prenatal and postnatal care and led to alterations in the atmosphere and procedures surrounding childbirth in the Western world. Most of these theories seek to help a woman to follow the lead of her body, in a loving and intimate environment.
DR. GRANT LEY DICK-READ
Dr. Dick-Read was the first obstetrician to realize that fear of giving birth was a main cause of pain in labor. He introduced the idea of natural childbirth, not only to the medical world but also to mothers. He recognized the need for proper education of mothers through prenatal classes and careful teaching, and also for emotional support, in the hope of eliminating fear and tension. His teaching was so basic that it’s now taken for granted by all centers, and there’s no method of childbirth that doesn’t rely on his teaching, including breathing exercises, breathing control, and complete relaxation. Dick-Read’s watchword was preparation-not only with information, but also by seeking help, reassurance, and sympathy.
FREDERICK LEBOYER
Leboyer was influenced by the psychiatrists Reich, Rank, and Janov, who shared the belief that later problems in life stem from the trauma of birth. His concerns are less with the mother and more to do with the baby’s experience of labor and delivery, and how this affects that baby once grown up. The Leboyer method of delivery works best if seen as an attempt to help people understand what a newborn baby sees, hears, and feels.
In his book Birth Without Violence, Leboyer suggests that the birthing room should have soft lighting, and there should be as little noise and movement as possible to lessen birth’s trauma. Leboyer also believes that immediate skin-to-skin contact is essential to calm the baby, and that she should be laid on her mother’s stomach as soon as she’s born. He also says that the newborn should then be bathed in warm water, since this is the closest she can get to the nurturing environment of the uterus.
Not all of this fits in with the physiology of what actually happens at birth. A baby needs to feel air on her face to stimulate her lungs to breathe for the first time: placing her in warm liquid may not be sufficiently stimulating for her to continue breathing. Many professionals say that there is no proof that Lebover’s theories work. However, it’s only right that every baby be welcomed into the world with reverence, so even if you don’t agree with all of Leboyer’s ideas, it’s still interesting to read about his suggestions for a gentler birth.
DR. MICHEL ODENT
When he worked as a general surgeon, Dr. Odent was extremely shocked when he first saw women pushing their babies uphill against the force of gravity because their feet were held in stirrups. He realized this meant that stronger, and therefore more painful, contractions were needed; that labor was much slower and more exhausting; and there were more complications because mothers were in a position where the baby was held back from being delivered.
His initial shock led him to develop his own methods of childbirth, broadly based on traditional midwifery, at Pithiviers in France. Odent believes that, given the opportunity, women in labor return to a primitive biological state, where they function at a new level of animal awareness, lose their inhibitions, and enter a state of consciousness in which they will follow their basic instincts. He believes that the natural pain relievers released by the body, endorphins, are responsible for this.
Pithiviers has the lowest rate in France for episiotomies, forceps deliveries, and cesarean sections, and all medical interference is kept to a minimum. By no means all of the mothers giving birth there have been low-risk. Many were expecting complications (a breech baby, for example), but went on to have successful natural births at Pithiviers.
SHEILA KITZINGER
A very highly respected birth practitioner, who has enormous influence in the West, Kitzinger believes that birth is a very personal experience, and that a laboring mother should be an active “birth-giver,” rather than a passive patient.
She likens the modern, managed birth in a modern, managed hospital to giving birth in captivity; in essence, to being in a zoo. She says that the zoo may be humanely and scientifically managed; the keepers may be kind and considerate, and pride themselves on a low mortality rate and the good condition of their charges; the visiting times may be frequent and the premises friendly and welcoming; there may be space to move around in the cage; those in charge may have tried to recreate the natural habitat, but the zoo still dictates the behavior of the captives.
She believes that the aim of maternity services should be first to allow parents a real choice, whether for a totally managed birth, a totally natural birth, or somewhere in between, and to respect their wishes about where and how their child is born. Second, she believes that birth is not an illness, and that a laboring mother and her partner should be treated not as patients, but as Intelligent adults with a right to have the final say in decisions about the birth of their baby.
